Applicator for treating body surfaces



Nov. 4, 1941. A. KAMIN'SKY ETAL 2,261,385

APPLIGATOR FOR TREATING BODY SURFACES Filed 001;. 29, 1940 u |.IWIIIIIIIIIIIII"[IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII/IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIL INVENTORS.

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ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 4, 1941 APPLICATOR FOR TREATING B ODY SURFACES Anthony Kaminsky and Anthony v. Washkewich, N ewark, N .,J

Application October 29, 1940, Serial No. 363,310

2 Claims. (01. 12845) This invention relates to means for treating body surfaces with emollients, oils or other liquid medicaments, and especially for treating the scalp and hair of the human head.

This invention has for an object to provide a simple and eflicient apparatus for applying to the skin or scalp a treating substance with or without mechanical vibratory effect, wherein the applied substance is carried in a reservoir provided with means to heat the same to a temperature at which it will readily flow with best skin or scalp penetrating efficiency, and wherein an applicator head having a novel valve means is so connected in communication with the res-- ervoir as to be quickly and easily manipulated to open, close and adjustably regulate communication of the treating substance to said applicator head.

The invention has for another object to optionally provide in the apparatus for the purposes stated, means to vibrate, as a unit, the reservoir and applicator head whereby not only is the applicator head adapted to produce, on contact with the skin or scalp, a massaging efiect well calculated to work the dispensed treating substance into the skin or scalp, but also whereby the vibration is transmitted to the reservoir body so as to agitate its content of treating substance thereby to enhance flow thereof to the applicator head. I

Another object of the invention is to provide an electric heating means for the treating substance reservoir together with an electric circuit to serve energizing current thereto, said circuit including both manual switch means and thermoresponsive switch means for automatically making and breaking the circuit to maintain a desired temperature condition of the treating substance; the system optionally includinga thermometer for indicating the heat condition of said treating substance.

Other objects of this invention, not at this time more particularly enumerated, will be understood from the following detailed description of the same.

An illustrative embodiment of this invention is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the apparatus according to this invention; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view thereof, taken on line 2-2 in Fig. 1, with the valve means intermediate the reservoir and applicator head closed; Fig. 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view showing the valve means between the reservoir and applicator head open.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of a somewhat modified form of applicator head; Fig. 5 is a bottom plan View of vthe same; and Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical sectional view thereof, taken v on line 6B in Fig. 4.

.Similar characters of reference are employed in the above described views to indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawing, the illustrative embodiment of the apparatus of this invention comxprises a casing. ID, the open bottom of which is closed by a removable cover plate II. Mounted on the top wall of said casing I is a hand grip means I2 for holding and manipulating the apparatus in use.

Disposed within the forward end portion of the casing. I0, so as to be vertically positioned therein, is an upwardly open reservoir member I3 having an axial externally screw-threaded stem [4 of reduced diameter, dependent'from its lower end. Said stem I4 is provided with an axial discharge passage I which terminates at its lower extremity in an inverted conical valve seat IS. The upper end portion of said reservoir member projects outwardly from the top of said casing I0 through an opening. I! provided in the latter for such purpose. The stem I4 projects outwardly from the bottom of said casing I0 through an opening I8 provided in the cover plate II. Mounted upon and externally surrounding said reservoir member I3 is an electric heating -means, the same comprising a container or jack-v et member I9 having a perforate bottom through which the stem I4 of said reservoir member extends, and so that said bottom 20 abutsa shoulder 2l at the juncture of said stem I4 withthe reservoir member I3. Disposed within the container or jacket member I9 is the heating element or coil 22, the same being imbedded and held in a suitable supporting filler compound23... Screwedonto the stem I4 is a keeper nut 24, having in its lower or outer end a downwardly open annular sealing cavity for purposes presently tobe set forth. The upper open end of said reservoir member I 3 is closed by a removable closure cap 26 adapted to screw thereon. In order to indicate the temperature condition of the content of the reservoir member I3, said closure cap 26 is also formed to hold in or at its outer end or side a suitable thermometer device 21.

Threaded onto the exterior lower free end portion of the reservoir member stem I4 is the applicator head of the apparatus. In one form thereof, shown in Figs. 2 and 3, this applicator head comprises a body member 28 having an internally screw-threaded axial bore 29 to receive said stem I4. Formed in the upper portion of said body member 28 is an upwardly open annular seating cavity 30 concentric to said stem. Formed in the lower portion of said body member 28 is a socket chamber 3| to receive and hold the base 32 of an applicator element. Projecting from the applicator element base 32 are a plurality of teeth 33 by which the skin or scalp may be manipulated when the apparatus is in use, and also projecting from the applicator element base 32, in suitably distributed relation to and among the group of teeth 33, are a plurality of treating substance discharge nipples 34, each of which is provided with an axial dispensing passage 35, Intermediate the bottom of the socket chamber 3| and the applicator element base 32 seated therein, is a distributing chamber 36 with which the reservoir member stem passage l5 communicates, and which, in turn communicates with the dispensing passages '35 of the several discharge nipples 3'4. Affixed to the applicator head, as e. g. by centrally affixing the same to the applicator element base 32 is a conical valve member 31 adapted to cooperate with the valve seat iii of the reservoir stem 14. Said applicator head having a screw-threaded connection with the reservoir member stem I4, when the former is turned in direction to cause it to move upwardly on the latter, said valve member 31 is moved into engagement with the valve seat l6 so as to close the stem discharge passage [5 against the outflow of treating substance through the latter (see Fig. 2). When, however, the applicator head is turned in direction to cause it to move downwardly on the stem I4, said valve member 37 is moved out of engagement with the valve seat It so as to open the stem discharge passage to the outflow of treating substance therethrough (see Fig. 3). The amount of turning of the applicator head in the latter case may be of such selective degree as to control or regulate the open valve condition whereby to predetermine the volume of treating substance discharged from the stem discharge passage 15. In order to hold the applicator head against displacement from either closed or selected open position, a compression spring 38 is mounted around the stem l4 between the keeper nut 24 and the applicator head body member 28; the upper end of said spring being engaged in the seating cavity 25 of the keeper nut 24, and the lower end thereof in the seating cavity 30 of said body member 28. The tensional thrust of said spring 38 sets up a frictional resistance between its respective ends and the keeper nut 24 and body member 28 respectively as well as between the engaged screw-threaded portions of the stem [4 and body member 28; such resistance operating to hold the applicator head against rotative displacement from any given position to which it has been moved, and yet leaving the same easily subject to turning by manually applied force.

In Figs. 4 to 6 inclusive is shown a somewhat modified form of applicator head, the same being especially adapted for working applied treating substance dispensed therethrough not only into the scalp but also upon and through the hair. This modified form of applicator head comprises a suitably shaped body member 28' having the internally screw-threaded axial bore 29 to receive the stern l4, and having inits lower portion a longitudinal socket channel 3| and superposed distributing chamber 36". Affixed in said socket channel 3| is a central applicator element base 32' having projecting discharge nipples 34, each provided with an axial dispensing passage 35. Said base 32 also carries the valve member 31 to cooperate with the valve seat I6 of the stem discharge passage 15 in the manner already described. Also affixed in said socket channel 3| to border one side of said applicator element base 32' is a comb member 39 having a plurality of closely spaced downwardly projecting fine comb teeth 40; and aflixed in said socket channel 34' to border the other side of said applicator element base 32 is a comb member 4| having a plurality of more openly spaced downwardly projecting coarse comb teeth 42.

In most cases it is desirable to provide means for transmitting to the applicator head and its cooperating reservoir member a vibratory axial motion. To such end an electr'o-magne'tic member 43 is mounted by means of a suitable supporting or carrying frame 44 within the interior of the casing l0, and cooperative with said electro-fn'agnetic member 43 is an armature piece 4-5, having one end thereof supported from said frame 44 by a resilient hinging connection 48, whereby the same may be operatively influenced by said electro-inagnetic member 43. The free end portion of said armature piece is provided with an opening 41, whereby the stem I4 may be passed therethrough so as to seat the reservoir member l3 and its heating means upon the free end portion of said armature piece, the same being secured in such relation thereto by screwing home the keeper nut 24 against the underside of the armature piece. It will be obvious that the vibratory movement imparted to the armature piece will be transmitted to the reservoir member, and to the applicator head connected with the stem of the latter. The imparted vibration 'not only moves the applicator head, when applied to the scalp, so as to pulsate the teeth and nipples of the applicator 'head against the scalp with a resultant massaging effect, but also such vibration, being imparted likewise to the reservoir member i3 and itsstem 14, sets up an agitation of the fluid treating substance contained therein which greatly enhances and assures the outward flow of the substance through the stem discharge passage l5 and thence through the dispensing passages of the applicator head nipples.

The electroinagnetic member 43 is served with energizing current through circuit wires 48 and 49 which are carried in a flexible cable 50 suitably coupled to the rear end of the casing l0. One of said wires, as '48, connects with a manually controllable switch 5|, preferably mounted in a side wall of the casing I0 so as to be manipulatable from the casing exterior.

The heating coil 22 of the reservoir member heating means is also served with energizing current through circuit 'wires 52 and 53 leading from the cable 50. One of said'wires, as 52, connects with a manually controllable switch 54, preferably mounted in the opposite side wall of the casing [0 so as to be likewise manipulatablefrom the casing exterior. Said circuit wire also preferably connects in series with said manual switch 54 a thermo-responsive or thermostatic switch means 55 of suitable form, whereby the heating coil circuit may be automatically closed and opened thereby to so control the heating element as to maintain the temperature of the treating substance at the degree of heat desired.

In some cases, in a simple form of device adapted for hand manipulation without mechanically induced vibration, the electro-magnetic means of the apparatus may be omitted, and the reservoir member and applicator head suitably fixed in a stationary relation to the casing I 0 or like support.

Having now described our invention, we claim:

1. In apparatus for the purposes described, a reservoir member, electrical heating means surrounding said reservoir, means to support said reservoir, an externally screw-threaded axial stem extending from said reservoir having a discharge passage therethrough terminating in a valve seat, a keeper nut on said stem to secure said reservoir and stem in assembled relation to said support, an applicator head carried by said stem having means to dispense treating substance discharged from said reservoir through said stem passage, said applicator head having a valve member to cooperate With said stem valve seat, and a compression spring between said nut and head to yieldably hold the latter in rotatively and axially adjusted valve controlling position.

2. In apparatus for the purposes described, a

casing having a hand grip, electro-magnetic vibrator means including an actuated armature piece supported within said casing, a reservoir member seated on said armature piece, said casing having an opening in its top through which the upper end of said reservoir exteriorly projects, said upper end of the reservoir having a removable cap to close the same, said cap carrying a thermometer, electrical heating means surrounding said reservoir member, an externally screw-threaded axial stem extending from said reservoir through said armature piece and exteriorly of said casing, said stem having a discharge passage therethrough terminating in a valve seat, a keeper nut on said stem to secure said reservoir and stem in assembled relation to said armature piece, an applicator head carried by said stem having means to dispense treating substance discharged from said reservoir through said stem passage, said applicator head having a valve member to cooperate with said stem valve seat, and a compression spring between said nut and head to yieldably hold the latter in rotatively and axially adjusted valve controlling position.

ANTHONY KALlVlINSKY. ANTHONY v. WASHKEWICH. 

